February 2006

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English Ivy Is An Invasive Weed In Pacific Northwest By Davi Richards, Oregon State University It was loved for gracing "hallowed halls" back in its day, but English ivy has become a major invasive villain in the Pacific Northwest, from British Columbia to California. Along the eastern seaboard it is considered invasive from New York to Georgia. Given a foothold, English ivy suppresses and excludes other vegetation to form a dense monoculture groundcover, unsuitable as wildlife habitat, except perhaps for rodents, explained Linda McMahan Oregon State Extension Service horticulturist. As a vine, it can completely engulf shrubs and encircles tree trunks of all sizes, leaving nothing uncovered. Shrubs shrouded in ivy may eventually die because light can't reach their leaves. The sheer weight of the extra vegetation also weakens the plant it grows on, making it more susceptible to disease and blowdown. Trees usually survive ivy invasion, even though weakened by retaining a "broccoli head" of foliage at the very top. There are more than 400 cultivars of this type of ivy grown in home gardens. "The most common ones we know as English ivy, Hedera hibernica and Hedera helix Baltica, California,, Pittsburgh, and Star are invasive and are on the noxious weed lists of several states, including Oregon and Washington," McMahan said. "The others may be well-behaved in isolation; but if given the opportunity, they can 'interbreed' and revert to the invasive species form. So if you want to use them at all, the only really safe places are topiaries and hanging baskets." Like many plants that are widely used for horticulture, the characteristics that originally made English ivy popular as an ornamental garden plant are the ones that make it invasive given a too-friendly environment. It grows rapidly, is a hardy, woody, evergreen perennial and needs very little light or water once it's established. It spreads rapidly as a groundcover and also climbs as a vine. Once it gains a few feet of height, by climbing trees, shrubs, mailboxes, fences or anything available, it begins to produce rounded leaves without lobes, which are distinctly different from the familiar three-lobed ivy leaf. Then small greenish flowers appear followed by clusters of black berries, eaten and spread by birds. If left untrimmed for several years, mature plants can begin to "climb themselves," gaining just enough height to morph into reproductive mode, she warned. English ivy blankets large portions of Portland's 5,000-acre Forest Park, the largest urban park in the country. In 1992 the city began the Ivy Removal Project to restore the native habitat of Forest Park by removing invasive plants, especially English ivy (www.noivyleague.com). In a similar project for Stanley Park in Vancouver, B.C., the Ivy Busters estimate that in their first 39 "Ivy Pulls" more than 700 volunteers removed more than 20,000 square meters of ivy. They say it will take 50 years to rid Stanley Park of this invasive pest. Ivy disasters aren't confined to city parks. Along the Oregon Coast Highway 101 between Newport and Lincoln City for instance, it's easy to find sections of forest where ivy has invaded and overwhelmed the existing trees and understory. "There are lots of good alternatives to ivy, both for groundcovers and for vines," said McMahan. "Crinkle leaf creeper (Rubus pentalobus also known as Rubus calcinoides) is an evergreen groundcover that grows at a moderate rate to about 1 foot high. Once it's established, it's drought resistant, needs little care, and adapts to sun or partial shade. Other aggressive groundcovers like oxalis and wild strawberry may also be good substitutes." An evergreen groundcover with some forms native to the Pacific Northwest is the familiar kinnikinnick (Arctostaphylos uva-ursi). With small, dense, glossy leaves, small pink flowers in the spring, and red berries in the late summer, it provides more visual interest than English ivy. Kinnikinnick is slow to become established, but eventually forms a dense mat. Once well rooted, it tolerates drought but not shade. Climbing hydrangea (Hydrangea anomala petiolaris) is a vigorous deciduous vine that climbs to 60 feet but doesn't "jump the fence" to spread uncontrollably. Its heart-shaped leaves provide a dense cover during the growing season, and its reddish bark provides winter color. It has showy white flowers in June. If you've inherited a problem crop of English ivy, you can crop it diligently to keep it from spreading or blooming, said McMahan. If you want to eliminate it altogether, to be sure it isn't allowed to spread by someone less responsible in the future, your method needs to depend on how much you have and where it is. If you have just groundcover, you may be able to pull it up by hand. If you have a large vine and cut the trunk, the upper plant will wither and die. Once it's dead and somewhat dried out, you can pull it off its base more easily. Because English ivy is evergreen and grows even during the winter, you can apply systemic herbicides like triclopyr and glyphosate any time of year as long as the temperature is above approximately 60 degrees. English ivy has a very waxy leaf surface; this means that the most effective herbicides might be those mixed with a surfactant to help dissolve the wax, said McMahan. The plants show dieback within a week during warm weather or a few weeks when it's cool. You will most likely need to repeat applications for a dense mat. Always be sure to follow the manufacturer's directions and safety measures explicitly when using herbicides. Study Finds Net Energy Of Biofuels Comes At A High Cost By Peg Herring, Oregon State University A new economic analysis of biofuels by Oregon State University sets a cautionary tone for the large-scale production of biofuels in Oregon. Results of the study suggest that the "net energy" of biofuel is expensive when all costs of its production and delivery are taken into account. The study was released this week by a team of economists in OSU's College of Agricultural Sciences that included William Jaeger, Robin Cross and Thorsten Egelkraut. By subtracting the energy spent to produce raw materials and to process and transport the biofuel, the researchers found that the cost of the net gain in energy for these biofuels may be more than seven times higher in some cases when compared to gasoline. "There is a commercial market for biofuels in Oregon given current subsidies," Jaeger said. "But success in the marketplace doesn't mean cost-effectiveness in achieving the state's goals of energy independence and reducing greenhouse emissions." The study was prompted by increasing interest in domestically grown biofuels as an alternative to foreign imports of oil. The economists examined three biofuel options for Oregon: ethanol made from corn, ethanol made from wood cellulose, and biodiesel made from canola. For each option, the researchers examined the cost of production, its contribution to energy independence and its environmental impact in terms of greenhouse gas emissions. They calculated "net energy" as the amount of energy in the biofuel minus the amount of energy it takes to produce, process, and transport the biofuel. Their results suggest that ethanol made from wood cellulose produced the greatest net energy, netting 84 percent of its energy after production fuel costs were subtracted. Biodiesel made from canola netted 69 percent of its energy after subtracting production fuel costs. And ethanol made from corn netted a mere 20 percent of its energy after subtracting the energy spent to produce it. The economists combined net energy calculations with estimates of production costs and greenhouse gas emissions and compared the results with similar calculations for gasoline and diesel. They found that each of the three biofuel options would reduce greenhouse gas emissions, but at a significant cost. For example, the cost of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by switching to corn-based ethanol was calculated to be more than 200 times higher than other existing policy options to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. A number of factors limit the economic viability of biofuels in Oregon, Jaeger explained. For example, relatively little corn is grown in Oregon compared to the Midwest, so corn for ethanol would need to be imported from other parts of the country. Canola and wood-based cellulose are both available in Oregon and Washington; however the production of canola is limited and the production of wood-based ethanol is not yet commercially viable. The co-products or byproducts created during biofuel production add another variable to the economic picture. "Many of these products&emdash;meal, glycerin or lignin&emdash;have energy and market value in their own right," Jaeger said. "Canola meal left over after extracting the oil can be fed to livestock. But, if canola were to contribute just one percent of Oregon's current petroleum energy consumption, enough canola meal would be produced to feed five times the number of cows we currently raise in the state." For comparison, the authors calculated that the net energy benefits from increasing automobile fuel efficiency by one mile per gallon would be equivalent to three or four corn ethanol plants or 13 biodiesel plants like those evaluated in their report. The study focused on three large-scale biofuels options, but did not evaluate on-farm or small-scale production and distribution. The authors point out that their estimates are based on current technologies and prices, and that future trends could shift the prospects for these biofuels positively or negatively. Based on their analysis, the authors concluded that these three biofuel options appear to be a costly way to achieve limited progress toward energy independence or reduce greenhouse emissions in Oregon. "Biofuels and bioproducts have an important role to play in Oregon's future,but Oregon's approach will be different than the Midwest's," said Bill Boggess, executive associate dean of OSU's College of Agricultural Sciences. "We need to carefully consider what bioproducts make sense in Oregon for the long-term and focus research on economically sustainable bio-based energy systems." To view the entire report, "Biofuel Potential in Oregon: Background and Evaluation Options" and its summary, go to: arec.oregonstate.edu Researchers Find Microscopic Worms That Attack Montana's Wheat By Carol Flaherty, Montana State University News Dave Wichman had a problem. The superintendent of the Montana Agricultural Experiment Station's Central Agricultural Research Center at Moccasin had poor yield and a seeming "failure to thrive" in a wheat field that had adequate nutrients, moisture and sunshine. Suspecting plant pathogens, Wichman sent soil samples to Alan Dyer in Montana State University's Plant Sciences and Plant Pathology Department for diagnosis. After finding a nematode known to attack wheat roots, Dyer wondered how wide-spread the nematodes were in Montana. He suggested that investigating the nematode's distribution within the state could be graduate student Wendy Johnson's master's thesis work. With Dyer's help, she designed a study that involved taking soil samples from around Montana to see how common the root-lesion nematodes had become in the state. Johnson dug into the problem, and enlisted MSU Extension agents in 17 counties to collect 148 soil samples from sites they thought were under-producing despite what appeared to be good crop management. Of the suspect sites, Johnson's work showed that 41 percent had "Pratylenchus neglectus" root lesion nematodes, and 14 percent of the samples had Neglectus in excess of the level known to produce economic problems. "Damage from root lesion nematodes in wheat results in stunting, premature yellowing of older leaves, reduced tillering and low kernel weight," Johnson said. "It's very difficult to distinguish the damage from that caused by nutrient deficiencies and drought." It's no surprise the nematodes hadn't been identified as a problem in Montana before. They are microscopic "worms" that are practically transparent. Root lesion nematodes thrive where other nematodes don't. By invading plant roots and carrying on most of their lifecycle inside the root, they remain active when the absence of free soil moisture would limit most nematodes. Looking at details about where Extension agents collected the samples, Johnson determined that Neglectus nematodes were more numerous when samples came from fields that had been previously cropped to winter wheat rather than spring wheat, and they were higher in no-till fields than in fully tilled fields. There are no chemical control methods approved for use in small grain, Dyer said. And, since nematodes previously were not known to be causing damage at an economically important level in Montana, no wheat varieties have been bred to resist them. Despite that, tests conducted in Oregon this past summer show two of Montana's spring wheat varieties, Choteau and McNeal, have some tolerance to nematode infestations. In addition, winter wheat breeder Phil Bruchner is now adding nematode resistance to his breeding program. "We have made initial crosses for moving resistance to root-lesion nematodes into varieties," Bruckner said. With no current controls available, Dyer plans to develop management tools for Montana's growers. Until that time, he suggests growers with high nematode populations consider rotating to field peas, since peas are poor hosts for the worm. The good news for Montana is that a second species of root lesion nematode known to attack wheat, "Pratylenchus thornei," was not found in Montana so far. Once Johnson had found Neglectus, she expected to find Thornei as well, since the two generally appear together. However, none were identified from the samples taken in 2006. Since Thornei is known to coexist in most fields that have Neglectus, Extension agents will help Johnson get another 150 samples from more suspect fields in 2007. The soil samples will be taken in early spring when the nematodes have not yet entered the roots of the newly planted wheat. Soil testing for nematodes can be made at numerous private and university affiliated laboratories. Check the following websites for recommended labs: http://www.bcc.orst.edu/bpp/Nematodes/contact.htm or http://www.cdfa.ca.gov/phpps/ppd/NematologySHProtocol.htm Alan Dyer (406) 994-6535 or adyer@montana.edu or Wendy Johnson at wendy.lewis@myportal.montana.edu Look For Snow Fleas In Melting Snow From University of Idaho's HomeWise They won't bite the dog. They won't bite the cat. They're not really even fleas. They're snow fleas&emdash;a species of springtails&emdash;and every year Idahoans find the tiny insects floating in melted snow. "People will call to say that there's this massive grey stuff on top of snow that looks worrisome to them, but snow fleas are just a curiosity," says Ed Bechinski, University of Idaho Extension integrated pest management specialist. "They pose no threat at all." At one-eighth inch or smaller, individual snow fleas are just barely visible to the naked eye. They come in many colors and feed on molds, pollen spores or other organic debris that accumulates in snow. They live year-round in soil&emdash;where their densities can reach 50,000 in a single cubic foot&emdash;but they're not apparent unless they're swarming on a surface that's a contrasting color. "There are cities of springtails living in everybody's yard, but you don't see them until they're feeding on organic matter on top of snow," Bechinski says. "They tend to appear rather dramatically. All of the sudden they're there, floating on the snow at the edge of the driveway." According to Bechinski, springtails are the "direct linear descendants of the first insects to show up in fossil records 400 million years ago." They launch themselves several inches into the air by unlatching a two-pronged, fork-like appendage beneath them. These abrupt, random launches have served them well. "As soon as you get near one, they flip away," he says. Most potted houseplants host the harmless snow fleas, which are considered an indicator of fertile, healthy soils. Rarely, snow fleas will infest wet parts of homes&emdash;showers, bathtubs, windowsills and so forth. Once you're through being amazed by them, just mop them up, Bechinski advises. Make Your Own Potting Soil By Peg Herring, Oregon State University It may be too early to put seeds in the ground, but itchy gardeners can get ready to grow by mixing up a batch of clean potting soil for starting seeds. Mixing up your own is more economical than buying sterile potting mix at a garden store. A good germinating medium is fine textured and free of pests, diseases and weed seeds. It should be low in fertility and soluble salts and capable of holding and moving moisture. But beware: Soil straight from your backyard just won't do the job, says Barb Fick, home horticulturist with the Oregon State University Extension Service. Typical backyard soil is too compacted and full of weed seeds. Native soil may not drain as well as potting mixes, and it can develop a crust that prevents seedlings from pushing though the surface. And it is not pasteurized, which can cause diseases in seedlings. Fick's recipe for a good basic pasteurized soil for starting seedlings is a mixture of 1/3 pasteurized soil or finished compost, 1/3 sand or perlite and 1/3 peat moss. You can use your oven to pasteurize a small quantity of seedling soil. Put slightly moist garden soil or compost in a heat-resistant pan and cover with a lid or foil. Place in a 250-degree oven with a food thermometer, to ensure that the mix reaches a temperature of 180 degrees for a full half-hour. Avoid overheating it, as the structure of the soil may be damaged. Sand, peat moss and perlite are available at most nurseries and garden stores, and a mixture of 1/2 peat moss and 1/2 perlite or sand works well, too, according to Fick. Another task is to clean your pots, trays and flats in preparation for planting. Scrape old dirt from containers, and then rinse them in a solution of one part chlorine bleach to 10 parts water to kill remaining plant disease microorganisms that could invade your tender young seedlings.

OSU Publishes Online "Small Farm News" Quarterly By Carol Savonen, Oregon State University The Oregon State University Extension Service's Small Farms Project has just published the first issue of its new online quarterly magazine, "Small Farm News." "We invite commercial farmers, small acreage owners, those with small farms and those who are thinking about farming in Oregon to subscribe to OSU Extension's 'Small Farm News'," said Garry Stephenson director of the Small Farms Program. "Topics focus on organic/biological farming, conventional farming, marketing methods and resources, land stewardship, and more." The contents for the issue include: • "Top Ten Things I Learned about Buying a Small Farm" • "Organic Fertilizer Calculator: A new planning tool" • "Finding Market Information for Agricultural Products" • "Winter's Coming Don't Get Stuck in the Mud!" • "Is Agroforestry Appropriate for your Small Farm?" • "Keep the Compost Cooking this Winter" • "Selenium Fertilization of Forages" The issue also includes a calendar of upcoming events and a variety of resources of interest. To take a look at Oregon Small Farm News, go to the Small Farms website and click on the newsletter icon to examine the first issue. Subscriptions for the online publication are free. The OSU Small Farms Program also offers an extensive website. The website provides university research-based information and publications for commercial farmers, beginning farmers, as well as small acreage landowners. There is information on current events in the Pacific Northwest, as well as on livestock, pastures, crops, soils, marketing, technical reports and links to upcoming conferences and workshops. For more information, contact Garry Stephenson, 541-737-5833. Oregon Bald Eagle Population Increases By Aimee Brown, Oregon State University For the fifth year in a row, Oregon's bald eagle populations exceeded recovery goals and studies are showing that the birds have been steadily increasing at an average rate of more than one chick per nesting pair since 2001. A 3 percent increase from the state's 2005 population is being reported by Oregon State University researchers, as the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service closes in on a court-ordered decision on whether to remove the bird from the Federal Endangered Species Act. The deadline for the agency to make the decision was Feb. 16, but was just extended to June. "The goal of listing any animal under the Endangered Species Act is to have the species recover sufficiently to be declassified," said Frank Isaacs, the OSU biologist who has conducted the state's bald eagle survey for the last 29 years. The bald eagle first received national protection in 1967 under the predecessor of the Endangered Species Act. The action came after years of population decline due in part to shooting and the widespread use of DDT and other pesticides responsible for the weakening of the bird's eggshells and lowering hatching rates. In 1973, one year after the banning of DDT, the bald eagle was formally listed as endangered in 43 of the 48 lower states, and threatened in Michigan, Minnesota, Oregon, Washington and Wisconsin. At the time about 400 breeding pairs remained in the lower 48. "In the late 1970s we started to see the size of the nesting population begin to grow," said Isaacs. "We first saw increases in areas where they were always common, then nesting sites started showing up in areas where people weren't used to seeing them. Now, there are breeding pairs over much of the state and up through the gorge." Biologists at the Oregon Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit in OSU's Department of Fish and Wildlife started tracking and preparing annual census reports of the birds' activities in 1978. In the 2006 survey a total of 2,098 observations made by more than 340 volunteers and cooperators were used to summarize the state of the birds. This year's count in Oregon and along the lower Columbia River in Washington found 528 known breeding pairs of bald eagles, an increase of almost 1,000 breeding eagles since the first census. "This is a species that the public really enjoys seeing and wants to see thrive," said Isaacs. "It proves that if we want to protect and save something we can do it." As the possibility of delisting bald eagles grows closer, it's time to start considering what it will mean for future eagle populations, said Isaacs. The birds and their nests will still be protected from hunting and poaching under the Bald and Gold Eagle Protection Act and the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, but their habitat will have much less protection from activity, including development, logging and encroachment. "There are several questions regarding whether habitat protection will be adequate without the safeguarding of the Endangered Species Act," said Isaacs. "We may lose some nest sites because of minimal protection in the future." Trimming Feed Supplement Costs Can Be Key to Profits By Marlene Fritz, University of Idaho With 2007 likely to be one of the last years that Idaho's cow-calf operators clear a noticeable profit before the 10- to 12-year cattle cycle once again levels and dips, Jason Ahola says producers should take a fine pencil to their trace mineral supplementation costs. A national survey conducted in the mid-1990s&emdash;when the previous cattle cycle was bottoming&emdash;found that low-cost producers attributed their greatest savings to trimming their feed supplement expenses. That doesn't mean eliminating them, but it does mean using them as efficiently as possible, says Ahola, University of Idaho Extension beef specialist at Caldwell. The four trace minerals in which Idaho cattle are most likely to suffer deficiencies and require supplementation are copper, selenium, zinc and manganese, Ahola says. Without enough copper, calves' immune systems can prove inadequate at weaning, leading to unnecessary sickness. Without enough selenium, they can develop "white muscle" disease, which weakens muscles throughout their bodies, including their hearts. Zinc deficiencies can leave calves shy in both immune response and muscle growth, and manganese shortages can take their toll on a herd's reproductive ability. Nationwide, about two-thirds of forage samples are low in copper and/or selenium, more than two-thirds are inadequate in zinc and one-seventh fall short in manganese, says Ahola. Idaho cattle are often deficient in copper because their forages can contain too much molybdenum, iron or sulfur&emdash;minerals that are necessary to a point but that will actually prevent cattle from absorbing copper when they're present in moderate or excessive amounts. Selenium content in Idaho forages, on the other hand, ranges from inadequate to toxic levels. To supplement with just the right amount of trace minerals, Ahola recommends sampling forages every five years for copper, selenium, zinc and manganese concentration. The University of Idaho Analytical Sciences Laboratory offers forage analyses, as do many private vendors statewide. "A $30 forage sample can save you a substantial amount of money," Ahola says. To rein in expenses without jeopardizing herd health, Ahola also suggests that producers: • use the forage analysis to develop a custom mineral mix for their herd, in consultation with their county extension educator • provide feed supplements during the seven most critical months&emdash;from about 90 days before calving to the end of the breeding season&emdash;rather than year-round • use inorganic minerals for most of their mix, sparing costlier organic minerals for animals under stress, such as calves at weaning and cows at calving • keep track of their cowherd's intake of trace mineral supplement to make sure they don't eat more than they need, and discourage overconsumption by adding loose salt to the mineral mix • keep mineral feeders covered and dry to avoid losses to molding, caking and spoiling "It all comes down to coming up with a more precise strategy to supplement cows and keeping costs as low as possible," Ahola says. "If you cut your mineral supplementation costs in half, you can save $10 to $15 per head&emdash;and there are many years when that's your profit." To help Idaho producers finetune their trace mineral programs, Ahola is conducting research on the feasibility of basing mineral status on liver biopsies collected via on-ranch necropsies from deceased animals rather than much costlier biopsies of cattle on the hoof. He's also investigating which liver sites in live animals should be biopsied for greatest accuracy and determining how much copper should be supplemented when molybdenum or sulfur are elevated. "Ultimately, we're trying to help producers meet their cows' physiological needs for trace minerals while also remaining profitable during the lean times of the cattle cycle," he says. Volunteer Potatoes Pose Daunting Threat to Sugarbeet Crops By Marlene Fritz, University of Idaho For decades, Idaho's sugarbeet growers have been rotating their crops with potatoes.Now, a University of Idaho weed scientist says they may be unintentionally growing as many as 211 sacks of potatoes while they're raising sugarbeets. According to Don Morishita, so many small, leftover potatoes from the previous year's harvest can sprout among the current year's sugarbeets that sugarbeet root yields can be sliced by 25 to 61 percent. "It was really an eye-opener for me," Morishita says. "I think what really makes the potatoes so competitive is that they have a jump on the sugarbeets early in the season and it's just hard for the beets to catch up after that. "The sugarbeet roots and the potato tubers are competing for underground space, and there's just a certain amount of space that's available for them to grow." Morishita decided to measure the potential impacts of volunteer potatoes on sugarbeet crops back in 2005, after learning that Washington State University scientists had found an average 9,985 leftover potato tubers per acre in fields they had surveyed. At the University of Idaho's Kimberly Research and Extension Center in 2005 and 2006, he deliberately planted potatoes in seven different densities-between 2,728 and 16,336 plants per acre-mixed in with sugarbeets. On average, in a 100-foot crop row, Morishita's research team found 12 potatoes tucked inbetween sugarbeets in the plots planted with the fewest potatoes and 69 potatoes in the plots planted with the most, with resulting yield losses of 25 to 61 percent. Plots seeded with a roughly average amount of unwelcome spuds&emdash;8,168 per acre&emdash;left 34 potatoes within sugarbeet rows at a yield cost of 42 percent. Currently registered sugarbeet herbicides have little effect on volunteer potatoes, Morishita says. The intruder potatoes produced tubers as large as 6 ounces&emdash;2 ounces more that it takes for a spud to grade U.S. No. 1. Morishita also found that the best time for hoeing out an average number of weedy potatoes was when tubers were just beginning to form underground&emdash;about a month after plant emergence. Hoe before then and you'll soon be hoeing again, he says: the stored energy in the tuber will send up a new potato plant that's still capable of nipping sugarbeet yields. Hoe later and the potatoes will already have begun to take an unacceptable toll on the beet crop. There are more reasons than simply eliminating competition to remove volunteer potatoes from sugarbeet fields, Morishita notes. They can host potato diseases, threatening neighboring potato fields as well as future potato crops. Morishita will repeat the timing-of-removal portion of his "interference" study this year. Sulfur Fertilization Can Boost Grain And Hay Protein Levels By Carol Flaherty, Montana State University News Winter wheat may respond to sulfur fertilization, especially when applied with adequate nitrogen, a Montana State University study suggests. Additions of soluble sulfur fertilizer significantly increased winter wheat grain protein content in two out of four years and increased grain yield in one of four years. Optimum responses to sulfur were measured at about 10 to 15 pounds of sulfur per acre. The study was conducted in the Knees area of the Golden Triangle, about 25 miles east of Brady by MSU professors Grant Jackson of the Western Triangle Agricultural Research Center and Rick Engel of MSU's Department of Land Resources and Environmental Sciences. "Winter wheat can respond to sulfur additions in a manner similar to nitrogen," said Clain Jones, MSU Extension soil fertility specialist at MSU. "Nitrogen is the nutrient most often limiting wheat yields in Montana, yet when nitrogen levels are adequate, sulfur can sometimes increase protein and sometimes yield." Sulfur, like nitrogen, is a building block for protein, Jones said. Applying one without the other can result in less than optimum grain protein. "Since winter wheat is increasingly being purchased for multiple flour products, grain protein content and flour quality are becoming more important when marketing the wheat," Jackson said. "Therefore, farmers growing winter wheat benefit from the addition of nitrogen and possibly sulfur fertilizers through increased grain yields and protein content." In this study, grain protein levels were high for winter wheat, ranging from about 12 to 18 percent. The highest levels of grain protein were achieved with the highest nitrogen and sulfur fertilizer rates. These findings are consistent with an earlier study in 2001 at Belt, Geyser, Moore and Moccasin, by David Wichman of the Central Agricultural Research Center. In those studies, sulfur applications increased alfalfa-hay protein content at three of the four sites, yet increased yield only at Moccasin. In dry conditions, sulfur additions may be beneficial even when sulfur soil tests indicate high levels of sulfur in the soil. "This is likely due to less gypsum weathering and decomposition of organic matter in dry conditions," Jackson said. Conversely, there's often no yield or protein response even when the soil test is low, often due to high levels of sulfur at depth. The highest likelihood of a sulfur response occurs on coarse, shallow soils as these soils generally do not contain much gypsum and have trouble retaining the sulfur that is present. Sulfur deficiencies in Montana, as well as other regions of the Northern Great Plains have been on the rise. Historically, very little sulfur fertilizer has been applied to Montana soils and through many years of cropping, soil sulfur reserves have become depleted in some areas. Higher yielding crops have also removed sulfur from the soil and accelerated the loss of soil sulfur reserves. Despite the finding that sulfur has increased winter wheat grain protein in this one study, the overall results on sulfur have been mixed. In the Golden Triangle, sulfur fertilizer applications for the past couple of years have either decreased or had no effect on grain protein levels and had little effect on grain yield. "Results from sulfur applications have been mixed, so apply sulfur with caution," said Jackson. The most common sulfur fertilizers are ammonium sulfate (21-0-0-24), ammonium phosphate sulfate (16-20-0-14), ammonium thiosulfate (12-0-0-14), gypsum (0-0-0-19), epsom salt (0-0-0-13), elemental sulfur (0-0-0-100), and granular sulfur (0-0-0-90). Elemental and granular sulfur are not readily available and may not cause a yield response for one to three years. In this study, ammonium thiosulfate was used, and in the alfalfa-grass study, granular sulfur was used. "Because sulfur soil tests do not always reflect how a crop will respond to sulfur fertilizer applications, the best way to determine if sulfur applications will result in positive responses is to test your field for increases in grain protein and/or yield by applying soluble sulfur fertilizer in strips," Jones said. "Growers should still plan on applying about 2.5 pounds of nitrogen (soil test nitrate nitrogen plus fertilizer nitrogen) per bushel depending on protein requirements," said Jackson. Winter wheat grain protein typically increases 1 percent with approximately 22 pounds per acre of additional nitrogen under low to moderate rainfall and 33 pounds per acre of additional nitrogen under high rainfall conditions. Engel said, "A winter wheat grain protein greater than 12.5 percent is generally associated with adequate nitrogen nutrition and a grain protein less than 12.5 percent is associated with nitrogen deficiency." Wheat requires relatively small amounts of sulfur and may be better suited than some crops in sulfur deficient soils. A summary of the winter wheat study may be found at http://landresources.montana.edu/fertilizerfacts (# 41). Contact your local MSU Extension agent or crop adviser for help with your sulfur and nitrogen fertilizer decisions, or for additional information on soil testing, fertilizer calculations, and placement, see Nutrient Management Modules 1, 3, 6 and 11 on the Web at http://landresources.montana.edu/nm. Some Punny Stuff I wondered why the baseball was getting bigger. Then it hit me. Police were called to a daycare where a three-year-old was resisting a rest. Did you hear about the guy whose whole left side was cut off ? He's all right now. The roundest knight at King Arthur's round table was Sir Cumference. The butcher backed up into the meat grinder and got a little behind in his work.

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